


Still Lingers Here

by Bandita_Dieci



Series: Mondays [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV), Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-14
Updated: 2014-08-14
Packaged: 2018-02-13 04:09:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2136468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bandita_Dieci/pseuds/Bandita_Dieci
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Stay with you?  Of course I’ll stay with you!  Wherever you go, my lovecup!  To the ends of the earth, to the moon, to death!”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Still Lingers Here

**Author's Note:**

> Again, kudos to regalxlegality over on tumblr for allowing me the use of her wonderful Regina and to ican-giveyoustars over on tumblr for the use of her fantastic Roger.

Jessica didn’t know exactly when she fell asleep, the transition from one state of being to another as seamless as a Toon’s clothes, but she knew for a fact she was now dreaming with her eyes wide open.  How else could she explain the long dead Rabbit standing just behind her desk, the yellow shade so closely associated with him suffocating her?

                _This is not good._

One furry paw touched her fragile human flesh – thick, tarnished, and wet, but not quite – fur soaked with paint so thick she was surprised it didn’t leave a white paw print on her scarred skin.  The no-longer Toon woman blinked twice, as though doing so would wake her up, yet nothing changed.  Her fingers interlaced each other in her lap, thumbs pressed tight together and nails digging into her skin.  Pain – not intense, not sharp as a pinch – but enough to prove that she was not, in fact, asleep.

                _Hallucinating, then._

That was just as bad.

Jessica brushed one hand through her hair – not as red as it once was, faded by years of humanity with more white than she cared to admit – and tried to focus on the papers in front of her.  Filing was not a particularly hard task; it was something she did on a daily basis – a habit, more than anything, to keep everything organized.  She forced herself to stand, ignoring the paw as it fell away, and gather the day’s papers, albeit earlier than normal, because at least in the file room she would be alone with herself and...whatever this apparition turned out to be.

But as she moved to leave her desk, the elevator dinged and she remembered with increasing horror that today was _Monday_.  For the first time in a long time, Jessica could feel herself growing short of breath as she glanced to the time.

_No._

_Not now._

_**NOT NOW.** _

But Jessica didn’t have the ability to stop time, as some might.  She couldn’t change the date, and most of all, she couldn’t stop the boy – older now than when she started her job here, but not by much – walking briskly through the elevator doors, head down, hands shoved into his jeans pockets, backpack strapped tight against him.  A deep breath – willing the boy to say nothing, to keep him from calling out to the woman just yards away, because even if _Jessica_ believed she was hallucinating, there was always the smallest possibility that _she wasn’t_ – and for once in her life, it seemed she would get her way.  Instead of yelling for his mother as he often did, the young boy heaved a heavy sigh and stopped just short of her office, slumping down into one of the plush chairs next to Jessica’s desk.

Jessica still hadn’t moved, now debating whether to speak to the boy or continue with her work.

_I’m not Roger_ , she thought, inwardly cringing at the name.  _I can’t help him._

So she chose not to say anything, gathering the files in one hand, clasping them against her chest, and heading towards the file room.  Then the hint of white Toon fur crossed the corner of her sight, the hallucination walking over to the boy with a bright, entertaining smile on his face.  Jessica’s eyes widened and without hesitation, she grabbed one of the straps of his red overalls, pulling the white Rabbit backwards.

The hallucination turned his head back to look at her, blue eyes wide and sad at the same time, a confused frown on his face.

She would not call him by name – would not give this fictional representation of the hollowness of her mind any connection to the real – _dead_ – being it was impersonating – but she spoke to him, words hissing through gritted teeth.  “Not.  Right.  Now.”

It opened its mouth to say something, whiskers twitching about its pale pink nose, but she clamped its mouth shut with one hand.  Her eyes met its, trying to be fierce as she always was these days, but it was hard to see him and keep her usual demeanor.  “You stay with me and leave the kid alone.”

Its ears curved into a heart shape, a goofy smile appearing on its lips as she removed her hand.  "Stay with you?  Of course I’ll stay with you!  Wherever you go, my lovecup!  To the ends of the earth, to the moon, to _death_!”

Even more proof he wasn’t real.  Her mind could never get his cadence right.

Jessica turned away from him, ignoring the sound of the hallucination’s hopping walk behind her, and held her papers even tighter against her.  This was getting out of hand.  If not for the pain, she’d be convinced she was dreaming.  It would certainly make this a lot easier.

But when was her life ever easy?

As she reached Regina’s office, however, Jessica was stopped by the color leaking out from beneath the door – brightening red bent with hints of another color hidden just behind it – one she knew she could identify if the blood red wasn’t so overpowering.  There was no yellow as there usually was on Mondays, not yet, not quite – there were glimpses of orange, but—

“Miss Rabbit, is there a particular reason why you’re lurking outside my door, or have you forgotten yourself?”

Jessica stepped forward and turned to face the office proper, eyes focusing on her employer.  “No, Ms. Mills.  No reason at all.”

A bright flash of red tainted with groping tendrils of black filled her mind, and Jessica tightened her grip on her papers once again, crinkling them slightly.  There were too many memories associated with that combination of colors – too much pain – that even as they faded away she couldn’t help but force herself to breathe.  Still, that third color passed by as Regina’s gaze drifted away, not that it was ever on Jessica to begin with, concentrated solely on the accounts on her desk.  “Then by all means, continue standing there.  I’m sure you won’t be in anybody’s way.”

Jessica paused until she felt a flash of orange followed by the slightest tinge of buttermilk, at which point she couldn’t help but say, “He’s already here, Ms. Mills.”

Regina’s eyes flickered to her, and the color – the one Jessica knew but couldn’t name – flashed briefly before being overcome with buttermilk.  “Where?”

“Sitting in one of the seats near my desk.”  Jessica lowered her head a little bit before propping the door open and taking a step inside of the office.  “Would you like me to send him in?”

_As if that would fix things._

Regina didn’t honor that question with an answer, and as she gave her secretary a look that held all the intensity of a glare without actually having to be one, the colors swirling around her **flickered** once more.

_Now – now she could see the color, now she could feel it pulsing through everything, painting flowers in the black and dancing with the red, merging with the buttermilk and hiding and laughing all the same—_

_Champagne, the taste of Dip like bleach on her lips._

The hallucination peeked around her legs, its ears flattening against its back as it clung to her, one paw grabbing onto her hand.  “Jessy, let’s get out of here.”

It was perhaps a testament to Jessica’s self-control that she didn’t move at its touch, didn’t wince at the sound of his voice, but remained there a moment longer, knowing she wouldn’t get an answer and yet waiting all the same.  She lingered a moment – this was not the time to say anything further, she knew that – but—

“Ms. Mills?”

“If you have something that needs doing, I suggest you do it, Miss Rabbit.”  Her eyes were on the accounts in front of her once more, accounts she’d already completed, and a wave of the softest lavender, pure in its shade, dripped from her skin like honey from a hive.

“Yes, Ms. Mills.”  Jessica nodded and took a step back, but before she could turn away—

“Please shut the door on your way out.”

This time Jessica didn’t even answer, her long fingers tearing out of the hallucination’s grasp and gripping the door instead, shutting it with a soft click.  She turned and headed towards the file room again, but a paw grabbed the edge of her skirt, pulling her backwards.  When she continued forward, the paw dropped away.  The hallucination hopped in front of her and turned, walking backwards with its arms splayed out.  “Jeepers, that lady was intimidating!”

Jessica didn’t say anything.  Hopefully if she ignored it, then it would go away.  The hallucination glanced around her once more, a puzzled expression on his face.  She passed it as she entered the file room, but as she began to put the files in their different cabinets – _Claude used to do this, but he never could do it **right**_ – the hallucination began to tap its foot against the carpet.  It placed one hand on its chin and seemed to be staring intently down the hall at—

“I thought I told you to leave him _alone_ ,” Jessica hissed.

The hallucination turned to her with a look that was so completely _Roger_ that she couldn’t say anything else.  He didn’t have to say anything – she knew the look well, knew that he was going to do anything he could to make the boy laugh, to cheer him up, because _sometimes laughter is the only weapon we have_ and she’d grown so used to being the knife but never being cut.  Without a word, the white Rabbit bounded down the hall and, although it took a moment, Jessica groaned and followed, rubbing her forehead with one hand.

_How are you going to help him when he can’t even **see** you?_

But there he was – the invisible Rabbit – trying to talk to Regina’s son.  When he saw Jessica nearby, he flashed her a bright smile and a thumbs up, but it was obvious the boy couldn’t hear one word he said.  She sighed and walked forward, kneeling down through the ghost of her husband to face the boy.  “Henry—”

“What do _you_ want?”  Henry didn’t even look at her, his neck tilted against the back of the chair and his eyes towards the ceiling.  “You don’t even like me.”

The hallucination shook his head rapidly.  “Of course she likes you!  Jessica _loves_ kids!”

She gave the Rabbit a short glare then turned back to the kid.  “You’re right, kid.  I _don’t_ like you.  Happy now?”

“No.”

“Well, then that makes two of us.”

There was silence for a moment, and the Toon Rabbit took that moment to elbow Jessica in the side.  “You’re doing great!  Keep it up!  He’ll be laughing in no time!”

Jessica sat down on the ground and leaned against the side of her desk, suddenly grateful that today she’d decided on pants instead of a skirt.  She tilted her head back as though to examine the ceiling then glanced to the kid again.  “There is absolutely nothing of interest up there.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you looking?”

“It’s none of your business.”

This time she just nodded to herself.  Now would be a good time to give up this endeavor, count her losses, regroup and try again later...or _never_.  There was a soft thwump as the hallucination dropped to the ground beside her, crossing his legs and grabbing his ankles.  “You should try a joke!”

“No, I don’t think he’s in the mood for a joke right now,” Jessica said, closing her eyes as though that would make the Rabbit disappear.

“People are _always_ in the mood for a good joke!”

“I said no.”

“Who’re you talking to?” the kid asked, his voice bored and annoyed.

Jessica cracked one eye open.  “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“That’s why I asked.  Duh.”

She watched the kid as he tilted his head back down to face her, eyes searching her face.  Henry had dropped his backpack to the floor a long time ago, and now he shoved it under his seat, crossing one leg underneath him.  Then he turned back to her, curious – which, in her opinion, was much better than whatever mood he’d been in before.  “So, who are you talking to?”

_Nobody_ , she wanted to say, but Jessica knew that was the wrong way to go about this conversation.  Shutting off a possible conversation was no way to go about cheering a person up.  So, despite never actually wanting to broach this subject with anyone, let alone Henry, she allowed herself to simply say, “A ghost.”

“Really?”  Henry’s eyes shot open and he leaned eagerly against the arm of his chair.  “Where is he?”

“Right next to me,” Jessica said, one arm indicating the place where the hallucination sat just beside her.

Henry grinned in excitement, but then the smile faded into a pout.  “Why can’t I see him?”

“Because he doesn’t just show himself to anybody.”

“But he shows himself to you.”

“That’s because he likes me.”

The boy grimaced and shook his head.  “Nah, he’s more likely to want to annoy you like I do.”

“And you wonder why I don’t like you.”

This elicited a giggle from the boy, but before Jessica could consider herself a slight success, the giggle stopped, replaced by the frown once more.  She didn’t know what to say, but after a moment’s hesitation, she gathered herself enough to try again.  “He has a joke for you.”

“Oh?”  Henry’s eyes lit up again.  “What kind of joke?”

“A knock-knock joke.”

Henry didn’t say anything, but his expression said that he would listen, just to see what the ghost would say.

“Knock knock.”

“Who’s there?”

“Etch,” Jessica said, mouth slowly forming the words and ignoring the sudden remembrance.

“Etch who?”  Henry’s eyebrows furrowed together, and Jessica smiled because that meant he hadn’t guessed the answer right away.

She hadn’t either, the first time, but after that, it was always her favorite of his jokes.

“God bless you.”

Henry’s face contorted and he leaned back in his chair.  “That’s not a very good joke.”

“And you’ve got a better one?”

He scowled.  “No.”

Jessica’s lips curved into a smug grin.  “Then it’s the best one we have, isn’t it?”

“I guess.”  Henry crossed his arms across his chest.

It was at this moment that Jessica turned to the hallucination as though to see how it would respond – whether it remembered the joke, whether he would smile, whether the fact that she actually succeeded at telling a joke would make him happy – only to find that it was gone.  Her eyes flickered up and down once, and she blinked as though that would bring him back.  Still, nothing.  She turned back to the boy, who still had his arms crossed and the scowl on his face, and, because she believed Roger expected it of her, asked, “Why are you out here?”

“I failed my math test.”

There was no hesitation this time, just the sad sort of sigh as his body collapsed in on itself.  “She’s going to get mad at me.  We went over this stuff like a bajillion times, and I thought I got it, and....”  He shook his head.  “I just suck at math.”

Jessica nodded once.  “Math can be really hard.”  She glanced down at his backpack, shoved under the chair, and realized that he probably had the test hidden in there.  “What was the test over?”

“Mixed fractions.”

“Ah.”

“They’re hard.”

Jessica shrugged.  “Not really.”  She turned to face the boy fully and gave him a calm smile.  “I actually majored in math, if you can believe it.  I could give you a few pointers.”

Henry’s eyes grew wide again.  “But you _hate_ me.”

“No, I don’t like you.  I never said I _hated_ you.”  Jessica stood, wiping imaginary dust off of her pants, and let out a sigh.  Her lips pressed together firmly as she thought, and for once in his life, it looked like Henry didn’t have anything else to say.  “Now go see your mom.”

“But she’ll be so—”

Jessica gave the boy a stare – one that Eleanor taught her a long time ago, before she and Roger were married, when her owner trusted her to watch over her baby girl.  Henry withered for a moment then nodded, picking up his backpack and rushing down the hallway.  Within seconds, the hallway flooded with bright yellow – it stained the halls, the carpet, and washed over Jessica’s thin form.

And, for once, she didn’t feel like she was going to die.


End file.
